March 13, 2005

Man jailed for sexual abuse

BRITAIN
This is Hertfordshire

A New Southgate man who is a major in the Salvation Army was found guilty last week of abusing a 14-year-old boy in the 1980s.

Graham Jones, now 61, of Brookdale, New Southgate, was sentenced to eight years in prison at Leeds Crown Court for sexually abusing the boy, who was a member of Jones' congregation in Yorkshire.

Jones, who has two sons and three grandchildren, was caught after a rag in the loft of the Salvation Army Citadel, in Wakefield, was found to carry his DNA and the boy's.

The teenager looked up to Jones, who was a respected figure in the Salvation Army, and was too scared to complain when he began to grope him.

The court heard the boy was systematically groomed, and Jones eventually began to have full intercourse with the 14-year-old in the church toilets and loft.

Posted by kshaw at March 13, 2005 09:56 AM